Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1887-05-14

NY WOuuu IOu Wdnb w ludhC bAOtACl
wound, namely, that of Conviction
Have YOU never known surgeon to
come and find chronic disease, and then
with sharp caustic burn it all out? So
the grace of God comes to the old sore
of sin. 1t has long been ranking there,
but by divine grace it has burned out
through these fires of conviction, "the
flesh coming again as the flesh of little
| child :" where sin abounded, grace much
more aboundeth" With the 10000 I'M
pardoned sins of your life, go and tell
Jesus. You will never get rid of your
sins in any other way; and remember
that the broad invitation which extend
to you will not always be extended.
King Alfred, before modern timepieces
were invented, used to divide the day
into three parts, eight hours each, and
then had three wax candles. By the
time the first candle had burned to the
socket eight hours had gone, and when
the second candle had burned to the
socket another eight hours had gone, and
when all the three candles were gone out
then the day had passed. Oh, that some
of us, instead of calculating our days,
and nights, and years by any earthly
numbers of opportunities and mercies
which are burning down and burning
out, never to be relighted, lest at least we
be amid the foolish virgins who cried:
"Our lamps have gone outr
Again, l commend the behavior of the
disciples to all who are tempted. Ihave
heard men in midlife say they had never
been led into temptation. If you have
not felt temptation it is because you have
not tried to do right. A man hoppled
and handcuffed, as long as he lies quietly,
does not test the power OF the CHAIN but
when he rises up, and with determine
tlon resolves 10 snap tne nandcuH or
break the hoppie, then ne nnds the power
of the iron. And there are men who
have been for ten, and twenty, and thirty
years bound hand and foot by evil habits
who have never felt the power OF the
chain, because they have never tried to
break it. 1t is very easy to go on down
with the stream and with the wind, lying
on your oars, but just turn around and
try to go against the wind and the tide,
and you will find 1t is different matter.
AS long as we go down the current of
our evil habit we seem to get along quite
smoothly, but if after a while we turn
around and head the other way, toward
Christ, and pardon, and Heaven, oh, then
how we have to lay to the oars! You all
| nave your lclupldIlOu. ou udNC OlC
kind, you another, you another, not one
person escaping.
| 1t is all folly for you to say to some
one: 81 could not be tempted as you are"
| The lion thinks it is so strange that the
| fish should be caught with a hook. The
| fish thinks it so strange that the lion
should be caught with trap. You see
| some man with cold, phlegmatic temper
ament, and you say, II suppose that man
has not any temptation" Yes, as much
as you have. In his phlegmatic nature
he has a temptation to Incidence and
consciousness and over eating and
drinking, temptation to ignore the
| great work of life; a temptation to lay
| down an obstacle in the way of all good
enterprises. The temperament decides the
styles of temptation; but sanguine or
| Emphatic, you will have temptation.
| Satan has a graphing hook just fitted
| for your soul. A man never lives be-
| yond the reach of temptation. You say
when man gets to be seventy or eighty
years of age he is safe from all satanic
assault. You are very much mistaken.
A man at eighty-five years has as many
temptations as a man at twenty-five.
They are only different styles of temp
tatiOn.
| ASK lue dSeu SHTlSlldu WHelHeT he is
never assaulted of the powers of dark
ness. If you think you have conquered
the power of temptation, you are very
much mistaken.
A man who wanted a throne pretended
| he was very weak and sickly, and ii he
was elevated he would soon be gone.
He crawled upon his crutches to the
throne, and having attained it, he was
strong again. He said: at was well for
me while | was looking for the sceptre
of another that l should stoop, but now
that have found it, why should / stoop
any longer?" and he threw away his
clutches and was well again.
How illustrative of the power of temp
tation! You think it is weak and
crippled influence; but give it chance,
and it will be a tyrant in your soul it
will grind you to atoms. No man has
finally and for ever overcome temptation
until he has left the world. But what
are you to do with these temptations -?
Tell everybody about them? All, what
a silly man you would be! AS well
might commander in a fort send word
to the enemy which gate of the castle is
least barred as for you to go and tell
what all your fralltles are, and what your
temptations are. The world will only
caricature you, Will only sco1t at you
What then must man DO! When the
wave strikes him with terrific dash shall
| he have nothing to hold on to? In this